Creepy android is creepy. And actually, Jeff’s right….i don’t think he needs to stay with him all the time, unless he’s got something to gain. My favourite panel is the 6th…..Jeff’s hair is so awesome 🙂

I like the new interaction between them. Despite his backchat and complaining, he’s probably, subconciously glad he’s not alone. He only complains cause he’s human. That’s what we do. Bitch about stuff.

I almost died at the joke… But in all honesty, humour sometimes disguises truth… So at least one of them wants to screw the other already.

Poor Jeff. Can’t even pee alone. He really does have a point though. Even if he managed to get away as such, if Deacon really wanted to find him, he’d find him. Deacon’s just being creepy in his socially awkward android way. Sure, they’ve programmed him to seem human, but clearly there are some things that get lost in translation… though that might have something to do with the deviation from his intended function and his subsequent adaptation, too.

… just wondering why it took him so long to get pissed being watched while peeing. (And if he did wash the T-Shirt meanwhile. I mean … It’s been nearly two weeks now. 😉 )

Apart from that: Enjoying this, enjoying this and once more enjoying this.

KBatty

Well, in a hostage situation I guess it takes you a little longer to get angry about having someone watch you pee on account of you’re probably still pretty grateful to be alive. That being said, after two weeks and an awkward remark like that on Deacon’s part, I personally think Jeff was finally comfortable enough to have an outburst.

As for the shirt… engh, it’s hard to say. Depends on how much damage was done to the colony, I guess. That, and being an ASO, Deacon probably doesn’t care how bad Jeff was smelling. That being said, the colony is Jeff’s home, so he’s probably got more clothes and a place to wash up, so long as his captor permits it. After all, a man who hasn’t washed for two weeks is a security risk: You could smell him at least 20 miles away. =P

Blahblahblah, this is just fan speculation on my part. The person with the real answers is Alex. =)

Cheshirecaticus

Ahah, panel 1. This page reminds me of my dog, need to know what I’m doing AT ALL TIMES and has no idea of personal space.

I’m really enjoying this comic. I love that there is a more complex plot/background. Pure romance is kind of boring, and pure smut (while fun) is forgettable. I like the banter and tension between the characters on this page.

Weekly updates, while totally the internet norm, are agonizing to wait for. It’s like reading a graphic novel one page at a time. Still completely worth it though. I imagine it would be hard to update more frequently, since you obviously put a ton of work into this (Plus I write a story that updates biweekly so I’m even worse about this and should probably just shut up).

Thank you! (And I’d LOVE to update more often, but you’re right, to create pages of this quality takes a lot of time. It’s more important for me to keep my commitment of a page a week than to push out a bunch of pages and then have to go on “hiatus”.)

We’re looking at Stockholm Syndrome I’m sure. Deacon gives Jeff more and more freedom? And in response Jeff starts developing positive feelings for him? Either way, Deacon seems to enjoy teasing Jeff. This is over a week from their last scene together isn’t it? They seem much more relaxed with each other, just bickering.

The page was slowly uploading, and I was waiting in anticipation- and as soon as I realized it was a restroom I couldn’t help but laugh, and Deacon’s just standing their- enjoying the view. It must be so incredibly awkward for Jeff. XD

Why do bathrooms always seem so grimey? You would think, with all of that technology they would have come up with a way to keep them spotless. lol I bet the bathrooms at The NoNeCo Main Campus don’t look like that!

As I expected, a wonderful update… I love where this story is going, and Winona, as always, has done a remarkable job. 🙂

And you are right. The bathrooms at the NoNeCo Main Campus are spotless. In fact, they use NanoRepulsor Technology to assure that dirt and other foreign materials are removed from bathroom surfaces in under 3 milliseconds—well within the “2 second rule” of when it’s OK to eat food one has dropped on the floor.

Ryn

it actually looks cleaner than the men’s room at the mcD’s i use to work at. all the metal fixtures were tarnished and the sinks were yellowed and grungy looking no matter what i used or how long/hard I scrubbed at them. the floor never looked clean even after several moppings with fresh water. and the SMELL ;i always wore a clean rag around my face to protect my nose.

and I really didn’t appreciate guys coming in and peeing behind me instead of using a stall while i was in there!

Jeff’s expressions. xD I about died laughing when Deacon says ‘do you want me to hold it?’ with that evil teasing smirk. xD God he’s sadistic. We all know, deep down, he’s a free thinking very opinionated innocently arrogant yet slightly sadistic in the right kind of way android. That’s ok, to. I approve. =)

Love jeff in panel six. He looks sexy like that. I think this is the best page showcasing your writing yet, Alex. xD Brilliant. xD

(by the way, Jeff, the answer to your question is you might try to kill yourself, thus leaving our poor smexy android with the tactical brain of an army of generals without a way to recharge himself. xD)

Another comment. This has been going on for 13 days? When I first read this page, I thought I saw 3. I can imagine this conversation at day 3. At day 13 it seems weird that it would take that long.

Lorescien

Oh, Deacon… you’re so darn adorable! X3 And Jeff’s so cute, too!! Ahhhhhh… this is just <3. Love love love! Lol, I don't even have anything intelligent to say about it. It's just mind blowing AWESOMENESS.

Oh…My…God…Deacon you are incredibly awesome!!! I’m sooo glad I wasn’t driving when I read this update or I might have wrecked my truck from laughing so hard!!!!! Kuddos, Alex, on your incredible writing and witty comebacks! Absolutely love it!!!

I really enjoy reading Artifice, it captures my Sci Fi imagination. The characters, so far, are so intricately developed, the story so well written I can’t wait until the next update to see what happens next!!! Couple that with Winona’s beautiful artwork, showing us the story and also portraying expressions and emotions stunningly. Keep up the great work!

Yes, what WOULD Jeff do if Deacon was not looking…other than use the bathroom in peace, I mean. The first and fourth panels cracked me up, I can’t wait to see how this develops into a deep, albeit akward, friendship. Will Deacon find someone to finally understand him? Will Dr.Maven get to the bottom of the enigma that is synthetic love? Will Jeff ever be comfortable peeing in public again!? So many questions! (Wait, Day 13…who cleaned up all those bodies…)

I wonder if, because Deacon is A.I., and therefore rather lacking most bodily functions (at least, I assume so), Jeff’s ah…processes…are just entirely fascinating for Deacon. He can’t have had much opportunity to observe a human so closely before, so maybe this is like a wonderland of human activity!

…Or maybe he’s just thinking Jeff is cute when uncomfortable. Because Deacon is sadistic like that. And we love him because of it.

Ryn

I was thinking that myself. and i doubt he’s seen anyone’s personal parts other than his own and maybe the other android’s so something else to be curious about i suppose. taking a shower must even more awkward, lets hope for him they’re stalls.

Interestingly enough, the Internet just taught me the word “fapping” last week. Now I’m seeing it everywhere…

kawilke

For me the most interesting part about this page is the different choice of words. I mean, Deacon and Jeff talk in a totally different way that somehow characterizes them. And that’s just amazing! You really get the feeling that Deacon is an artificial human by his talking. It’s not only because it was metioned by other people several times before. It’s like they gave the reader the knowledge. But Deacon himself turns that knowledge into a feeling for his origin. If you know what I mean. However. Alex – Great job! I really do like your dialogs.

Wow, thank you. That’s actually a huge compliment for me. Giving each character a different “voice” is one of the biggest challenges I have as a writer. I’m still nowhere near as good at it as I’d like to be. It makes me happy to hear it’s working for you in Artifice. 🙂

kawilke

You’ve totally gave everyone their own voice. Challenge won, I guess. ;D

Don’t get me wrong, I understand that Jeff has had a very hard life, but to me, he comes off as very…immature and angsty. It annoys me a little, but at the same time I can’t wait to see how he will develop as he gets more and more involved with Deacon.

I’d be the first to admit that both Jeff and Deacon have their flaws. Both have characteristics that could make them… challenging to like. Glad to hear you’re still interested in seeing how things develop, though!

From what I can see Jeff is acting just perfect considering the situation, and where he was stuck growing up. If he was super happy and trusting wouldn’t it seem odd? >_> Of course usually characters like that have long pity party cry sessions infront of their love interest….. which I suppose would be character development but most people would think, “He’s just a crybaby who needs to get laid”. -.- I like his sarcastic way of lashing out and (maybe I’m reading to much into it but) if he acts this way normally its probably a defensive mechanism to keep people away so he does not get hurt as much when they turn on him? Well that is what I used to do anyway.

You know, I noticed Decon when standing idle his fingers are almost always curled into his palm which unlike humans who, when standing relaxed and idle, let their fingers hang naturally by their sides. I enjoy that detail on Decon because it makes him more synthetic and adds a quirk to his character. It also gives him a more intimidating appearance.

I wonder though if that is his natural stance so he is able to strike out quicker, especially seeing as how Decon’s comrades curled their hands as well. As a android solider such a thing would make sense for combat situations.

All I can think now is how it wo0uld be funny if Jeff was thinking about doing…. Other sutff in the bathroom and Deacon is just there, glued on his heels. I can juuust envision how bad (no not bad at all <3) it would end.

Also… What if Jeff said "Yeah"? I wonder what Deacon would do…

(Wheeee so good that the donations went well! I didn't donate because I don't have international credit card – or a credit card as a matter of fact – but it's really nice to see all went well <3)

For the right now, I wouldn’t have the time to add Spanish to the word balloons and I’d be cautious about authorizing scanlations, but I’d be very cool with (and appreciative of) folks coming up with transcripts of the pages in different languages, There is a feature for this webcomic plugin that allows transcripts to be included (although it seems to be broken right now. If it doesn’t get fixed soon, I’ll figure out some other place to add transcripts for the time being.) But transcripts would definitely be a great thing to have as part of the comic!

It’s very flattering that you’d even want to take the time to do that and I’m sure there would be lots of readers who would be very thankful too! Thank you very much for the offer! 🙂

So, you’re fine with me sending you a .pdf with Spanish translation of every page? Cause that would be awesome! 😀 Well my translation would be a fan translation, but of course I’ll do it like a pro 8D and try overall to keep the mood you’ve put in your characters.

Actually, a “rich text file” (RTF) would be the best for me — a text file that would include italics so that that information gets included.

After responding to your last comment, I was actually able to get the Transcripts feature working on here. On this page, click on the word “Transcripts” right above the Donate box above to see what it looks like in English.

You’ll see I also gave each line of dialogue a letter so it will be easy for people to know which words correspond to which balloon. If you decide you want to do this, I’ll add an English transcription to every page to make things easier. And if you really like doing them, I’ll create an account for you on this site so you can add them yourself.But maybe we can try just with this page to see if you like it? You can email me the file at alex at yaoi911.com.

Looks like Deacon’s had urinalysis observation duty one too many times… (Yes, that really is a thing. The military takes its zero tolerance drug policy VERY seriously.)

Ikaru Sentinal-K’Valshar

Oh boy do they ever. *groans* Like…every month practically.

Phyre Storm

I realize this is really old and irrelevant because of the direction the story takes, but personally, I’d try and find out if Deacon’s eyes were as essential and squishable as a human’s. THAT’s what I’d do when he wasn’t looking.